The present invention relates to an image stabilizing unit, a lens unit having an image stabilizing function, and an imaging apparatus.
Publicly known imaging apparatuses include one having an image stabilizing unit in which a lens or an imaging device is moved in a plane perpendicular to an optical axis as a movable compensation member in order to compensate an image vibrations. In JP 2006-65352 A, the image stabilizing unit which moves a lens is described, and in JP 2003-111449 A, the image stabilizing unit which moves an imaging device is described.
In these conventional image stabilizing units, two drive units and two guiding shafts (when drive units are linear actuators, they can also be used as the axis of the drive units) are placed so that an angle of 90 degrees may be made from the optical axis center of a movable compensation member. The driving force of the drive unit acts toward the optical axis center of the movable compensation member or in the direction of 90 degrees with respect to the optical axis center. The guiding shafts are placed in parallel with these respective drive directions.
Publicly known lens units include one in the bent optical system which bends the luminous flux from a subject 90 degrees to reduce the thickness in the subject direction. However, when the conventional image stabilizing unit was adopted for the lens unit in the bent optical system, the thickness of the lens unit became large, which spoiled the advantage of the bent optical system, that is, the thickness can be reduced in the subject direction.
In the case of using a lens unit of the type which does not bend the luminous flux, the conventional image stabilizing unit was not able to meet the needs of structuring a thin imaging apparatus in which an area facing a subject is decreased.